TNN
Mumbai, May 6: Pakistani crooner Adnan Sami's wife Sabah Galadhari is pulling out all stops in her fight for a divorce in Mumbai. The newspaper heiress "from an extremely wealthy family of Dubai" has sought to get out of the marriage, saying she "can't tolerate Adnan's behaviour anymore".
Not just Adnan, she has also blamed his father Arshad Sami Khan for her situation. In her divorce plea, Sabah has revealed that Arshad Sami was a former Pakistan Army commander and had been in service during the 1965 war against India. Quoting from '3 Presidents and an Aide - Life, Power and Politics', a book authored by Arshad Sami, Sabah said he was "responsible for killing a lot of Indian soldiers and had even been honoured by the Pakistan government with the Sitara-i-jur'ar title for the killings".
She said Adnan himself had refused to attend his father's book launch function in Delhi, saying it "could ruin" his music career. Adnan never wanted to disclose that his father was a fighter pilot and responsible for the death of Indian soldiers, she claimed, adding that his father's past had caused the singer "great stress" and led him to drink.
Neither Adnan nor Sabah are Indian nationals and their bitter battle has already sent them court hopping. Sabah had earlier moved the Bombay high court to get Adnan and his father removed from their spacious Andheri residence. When the high court threw out her plea, she approached the local police and filed criminal cases for which the singer is facing arrest.
Sabah is now ready to wage a legal war at the Bandra family court to end their two-year-old second marriage to each other, which was solemnised in Mumbai under Muslim law. She has demanded Rs 10.2 crore from Adnan, including Rs 5.5 crore as compensation, Rs 4.5 crore which her family gave him as funds and Rs 10 lakh given as 'mehr' during the wedding. The first hearing is expected on May 8.
Sabah has said that Adnan had "pestered" her for almost three years after their divorce in 2004 and told her how he was taking steps to lose weight to win her back. His battle against the bulge saw him lose 100 kg and undergo gastric bypass surgery. "Believing" that he had truly stopped drinking for her, Sabah claimed that she "innocently agreed to give him a second chance" despite her family's objections.
"Once again, I was hopeful of bliss," her petition says. "But happiness lasted a mere three to four months." She says her dream of motherhood was crushed when she discovered that "excessive alcohol" had led to a low sperm count in her husband.
During a visit to Islamabad soon after their wedding, she said she found out that her father-in-law too had "alcoholism" problems and the family was "cold and acerbic" towards her. Also, the singer began asking her for money to repay old debts and never took her "anywhere for a honeymoon".
There's the mother-in-law versus daughter-in-law issue too. Sabah has claimed that Adnan's mother had had disputes with her in public over trivial matters like which "cold drink" to have. Saying that she comes from a "family with lots of love and care", Sabah claimed that she had been "reduced to tears" by her mother-in-law's conduct.
Back in Mumbai, she said Adnan continued to drink and abuse her, but she "never told anyone about it to preserve her family's dignity". Believing that Adnan's father might be of help, she said she had poured her heart out to him. According to her, Sami Sr was "shocked" at her "suffering" and had told Adnan to behave himself and treat her with respect.
But Sabah alleged that Adnan paid no heed and would get so violent on occasion that she "literally had to flee from their home temporarily".
The divorce petition mentions in excruciating detail that he "indulged in womanising" and had "an inappropriate relationship with a leading playback singer". She said that she was "deeply pained to witness his infidelity and it was a severe blow to their marital relationship".